"Did Not Board Flight to LA"...Ohtani Gambling Interpreter's Whereabouts Unknown

Residence Verification Not Possible

Foreign media reported that Ippei Mizuhara (41), the former interpreter of Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles (LA) Dodgers in Major League Baseball (MLB), has been missing following a gambling scandal.

MLB superstar Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers).
[Image source=UPI Yonhap News]

The LA Times reported on the 29th (local time) that "Mizuhara, Ohtani's former interpreter, has not appeared publicly" and "did not respond to our interview requests." Citing Dodgers executives, the report also stated that Mizuhara did not board the charter flight returning to LA after the 'Major League World Tour 2024 Seoul Series' held in Korea. It is also unknown whether he has hired a lawyer. Mizuhara's residence in the U.S. is unclear, making it even more difficult to confirm his whereabouts. Only his parents' home in Diamond Bar, LA, is known.

Mizuhara had been connected with Ohtani since the time Ohtani played for the Nippon-Ham Fighters in Japanese professional baseball and served as his dedicated interpreter after Ohtani entered the Major Leagues in 2018. However, after it was revealed that he was involved in illegal gambling and even embezzled funds from Ohtani during this process, the Dodgers fired him on the 21st.

Five days after the dismissal, Ohtani held a press conference at the Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles, California. He stated, "I have never engaged in sports gambling or intentionally sent money to gamblers," and completely denied allegations that he directly transferred $4.5 million (approximately 6 billion KRW) to gamblers to pay off Mizuhara's debts.

Suspicion Raised Over Ohtani's Explanation... Possibility of Involvement Questioned

However, sports business expert Joe Pompliano raised doubts about Ohtani's press conference on X (formerly Twitter). His first question was "How could Mizuhara, Ohtani's interpreter, have accessed Ohtani's bank account?" and secondly, "How could Ohtani himself not have noticed large sums of money being withdrawn over several months?" Pompliano pointed out, "It is difficult to believe anything until answers to these two questions are provided."

Yahoo Sports also questioned, "How did no one notice $4.5 million disappearing from an MLB player's account?" The financial magazine Forbes, in an article titled 'Why Ohtani is unlikely to be innocent in the gambling scandal,' raised strong suspicions about Ohtani's possible involvement, stating, "If Ohtani truly was unaware of the $4.5 million transfer, Mizuhara is likely to face additional charges of fraud and identity theft."